Colorado Panels Issue Reports, Seek Reform

Colorado Springs--Gov. Richard D. Lamm told about 900 educators this
month that while it is too soon to see the effects of the reform
proposals in the classroom, the recent national reports on the state of
education have already had a profound effect.

"They have gotten people asking questions," he said, "and asking
questions is the first part of reform."

The Governor spoke at a conference in Colorado Springs during which
representatives of nine different task forces appointed by the Colorado
State Board of Education described their findings. The task forces,
three of which were appointed before the National Commission on
Excellence in Education issued its report last spring, were composed of
teachers, administrators in higher education as well as the schools,
school-board members, legislators, business and community
representatives, parents, and a few students. And although several of
the task forces have not yet finished their work, a clear consensus on
the prevailing educational concerns in Colorado emerged.

More Rigor, Excellence

Participants in various conference sessions repeated the
now-familiar call for more rigor, for excellence, and for strategies to
stem "the rising tide of mediocrity." One of the most pervasive
suggestions was for a return to a common academic program for all
students, including those who will not go on to college. Each of the
five task forces dealing with academic subjects--mathematics, English,
foreign languages, social studies, and science--proposed or is
considering that same recommendation.

The mathematics task force, appointed in November 1982, recommended
three years of math for all students, and four for those going into
math-related occupations.

In addition, it urged school districts to require all high-school
juniors to take a 90-minute diagnostic examination in mathematics
developed by Ohio University and expanded by the Colorado group. The
purpose of this examination is to help school officials gauge the
adequacy of their mathematics curriculum and to identify juniors who
need to improve their skills. The University of Colorado has begun
offering the test this year; so far, 7,000 juniors have volunteered to
take it.

The English task force strongly recommended four years of English
for all students, with one semester of writing required in the senior
year. This panel also specifically stated that students should be able
to demonstrate mastery of skills in "writing, literature, language,
speaking, listening, reading, media, and reasoning." Educators should
not assume that requiring certain courses guarantees that students will
master the material, task-force representatives said; their skills must
be demonstrated.

Another task force, appointed in August 1982 to study the
proliferation of remedial courses in Colorado's public colleges and
universities, echoed even more strongly the recommendation for
increased academic rigor. In addition to recommending strict
high-school requirements, it suggested that a year of Latin or a
Romance language be mandated for all junior-high school students.

Dropout Rate

When a teacher in the audience asked John Peper, superintendent of
Jefferson County Schools and a member of that task force, whether such
difficult requirements would increase the dropout rate, Mr. Peper
responded that "we have the experience of going in the opposite
direction for 15 years and the result is unsatisfactory. Let's try it
this way for a change."

Fred M. Hechinger, president of the New York Times Foundation,
chided educators at the conference for being overly defensive, but the
participants nonetheless continued in small-group sessions to criticize
the present system of teacher education as well as certification and
recertification procedures.

"No one is happy," said Mr. Peper, "that the lowest-qualified
candidates on campus are the ones going into teaching. We are saying to
the colleges 'Do something about that, don't take them."'

Members of several of the task forces said they were recommending
more stringent state standards for certification and clear procedures
for evaluating teachers so that the best can be rewarded and
retained.

Perhaps the most startling recommendation came from the task force
examining the education profession. It recommended the abolition of
tenure for public-school teachers, on the grounds that tenure tends to
discourage the best people from entering the profession and because of
the public's low opinion of tenure.

"Tenure has achieved such a negative status," said Eugene Layman, an
administrator from Jefferson County, "it is necessary to change
it."

Perception of Tenure

The president of the Colorado Education Association, the state's
largest teachers' union, did not disagree. "We're aware of the public
perception of tenure," he said, "and we're exploring the whole
concept."

While the individual task forces have been at work, Governor Lamm
has established yet another group to sift through the various
recommendations to make a workable legislative package. "We don't need
a laundry list of reforms and a media moment full of sound and fury,"
the Governor said. "Improvement is under our noses. We must expect more
of our kids."

Vol. 03, Issue 06

Notice: We recently upgraded our comments. (Learn more here.) If you are logged in as a subscriber or registered user and already have a Display Name on edweek.org, you can post comments. If you do not already have a Display Name, please create one here.

Ground Rules for Posting
We encourage lively debate, but please be respectful of others. Profanity and personal attacks are prohibited. By commenting, you are agreeing to abide by our user agreement.
All comments are public.